Completely revised and up-to-date coverage of
Generic programming, restrictions and limitations, type bounds, wilcard types, and generic reflection
Swing GUI development, including input validation and other enhancements
Exception handling and debugging, including chained exceptions, stack frames, assertions, and logging
Streams and files, the new I/O API, memory-mapped files, file locking, and character set encoders/decoders
Regular expressions using the powerful java.util.regex package
Inner classes, reflection, and dynamic proxies
Application packaging and the Preferences API
The seventh edition of Core Java™ 2, Volume I, covers the fundamentals of the Java 2 Platform, Standard Edition (J2SE™). A no-nonsense tutorial and reliable reference, this book features thoroughly tested real-world examples. The most important language and library features are demonstrated with deliberately simple sample programs, but they aren’t fake and they don’t cut corners. More importantly, all of the programs have been updated for J2SE 5.0 and should make good starting points for your own code. You won’t find any toy examples here. This is a book for programmers who want to write real code to solve real problems.

Volume I concentrates on the fundamental concepts of the Java language, along with the basics of user-interface programming and provides detailed coverage of

Core Java 2, Volume 2 covers the more advanced features of the Java 2 platform that can add polish and power to your Java programs. The authors' accessible--yet thorough--coverage of essential Java APIs help make this book an attractive choice for any working Java developer.
Several chapters here are especially useful for getting control of new and important Java 2 features. Sections on the new Java 2 collection classes and using advanced Swing classes (like tables and trees) are particularly good. (While many other books just list Swing APIs, this volume provides short examples and effective commentary, which will let you master these complex Swing controls.) When it comes to Java2D graphics, the authors do a nice job of comparing the old AWT to the new Java2D, including drawing basic shapes and doing text output. (These operations are surprisingly tricky in this new API). A section on the new JDBC 2 standard shows off new features like ResultSets and scrollable cursors to good effect.

More advanced topics include multithreading, internationalization, and security. Throughout, this text introduces important concepts illustrated with comprehensible examples. The APIs for individual classes are listed too, making it possible to use this book as a reference, but it is the tutorial sections that stand out here. (The authors also aren't afraid to point out where Java 2 is lacking--for example, in its printing support.)

Readers of the first volume will naturally want the second volume of Core Java 2 too. It's also a great choice for any Java developer with JDK 1.1 experience who wants a tour of new Java 2 features that are essential for serious corporate development. --Richard Dragan

Book Info
Provides advanced topics and real-world code for experienced developers, a thoroughly revised coverage of multithreading, networking, JDBC API, remote objects, and fully updated and tested code for the Java 2 platform. Softcover. CD-ROM included. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.